Chapter 193 - Ghosts (2)

Luke landed on the back of the monster and immediately thought of making his sword pierce the creature's neck. Still, then he recalled that Tame had already leveled up, so he decided to tame that one. Before the monster could shake him off, Luke touched its neck with both hands and then used Spark Ball over and over again. While that power couldn't be compared to Lightning, the damage still piled up, and the creature eventually fell unconscious. Much to Luke's surprise, the skill worked on the first try. His luck was good, or maybe there were other factors involved in that.

You obtained a new follower.

"Well… I guess it is true what they say," Luke frowned. "Negative status works better when capturing them all. Who said that you can't learn something playing pockermon? I also learned the names of many plants thanks to it."

While some of the wounds were still there, the frozen mammoth sook woke up and waited for his orders. Luke realized that he should have asked the others if that one was a female, but since they didn't stop him when they saw his change in his actions, it seemed that it was fine. 

"All right… Let's call you Mamaswine," Luke said.

"This is a very poor combination of words…" Rina frowns. "It is also offensive."

"I have to agree with her this time," Shalia said.

"You think it is a bad name?" Luke asked. "Well, I am open to suggestions."

Although they complained, neither Rina nor Shalia had better ideas. In any case, Luke wished that they couldn't think too literally regarding the name of Luke's new pet. It was just a similar Pockermon… a name free of copyright charges. Hopefully... 

"How about Pilaswine?" Luke asked.

"Only slightly better," Rina replied.

"I was expecting something more…" Shalia replied.

"You guys are so hard to please," Luke said and then sighed. "It will be pilaswine and critiquing is easier than doing better.

In any case, Luke jumped on Pilaswine's back and then helped Rina sit on their back. With the help of that new friend, they should be able to cross those lands faster. It didn't take long for another one to block their paths, and naturally, both creatures charged at each other. If they leave things like that, the monsters will most likely die together, so Luke made sure to help with Spark Balls, and Rina used her whip. That left the enemy monster wide open to counter attacks, and Luke's Pilaswine used those golden opportunities to headbutt her former ally without showing any mercy.

"I imagine that feeding an army of these will cost a fortune in food," Rina said.

"Mother nature is weird, Rina," Luke said. "With the exception of a few creatures, logic says that the bigger the creature, the more vegetarian they will be. Luck for us, your planet is a lot greener... it is hard to imagine them starving here."

Rina wasn't so sure of that, but she decided not to pursue the matter. In any case, Rina decided to walk in a straight line to avoid as many battles as possible. While the frozen mammoths appeared only a few months ago, their numbers were too big. Even with the help of one of them, and the help of some skeleton wizards, the battles were taking too long. Fortunately, all that hard work paid off. He found a skill book.

Congratulations! The skill Water Tornado has leveled up.

You obtained 05 status points.

"Hmmm… this area feels strangely familiar," Luke said.

"Well, we aren't that much farther away from the first hideout we checked," Rina said. "I suppose we missed those points by chance."

"Since that is the case… is there a chance that the people of the first shelter might have come in this direction instead of the second shelter we visited?" Luke asked.

"... That possibility certainly exists," Rina frowned. "They might have found too many enemies along the first escape route and ended up being caught by these creatures when they began to appear."

"I wouldn't go that far while assuming things," Luke said. "Still, it would have been a bad idea to send messengers to this region."

Luke didn't know if the shelters of that region had been destroyed by the monsters, but they certainly were there for a reason. They were probably working as the first line of defense for the location of the crystal and possibly an overlord. That being said, they were lazing around under the snow, so there was a chance that the elves had been left alone.

One day later, Luke's group found the first shelter in that area. It was located near the entrance of a massive forest. It was pretty dense as well, so the frozen mammoth wouldn't be able to cross without knocking down some trees, but there was no sign of that. Also, there was no sign of the inhabitants of the shelter inside either. 

"It seems no one is home…" Shalia said.

"There are no signs of battles around here. The monsters aren't particularly close to the forest either… So why did they leave?" Rina asked.

That was a good question, and Luke couldn't answer it. After checking the houses in the area, Luke confirmed that the elves left with only the clothes on their bodies. Food, tools, clothes… they left many things behind. It didn't seem like they were in a hurry either…

"Where are the other shelters?" Luke asked.

"In other points inside this forest," Rina replied. "The terrain is a bit difficult to cross, so they probably didn't maintain contact with each other about what was happening in the area."

Even if they could, Luke doubted that they could warn each other in case something dangerous happened. The weather conditions were too difficult to deal with, and the distance between the shelters should be pretty high.. Even with their bodies and support skills, one elve wouldn't be able to warn the other shelters soon enough.